Down payment help for a first home on Long Island
The down payment is the wall for most first time buyers here. Programs exist that lower it. Some pay a big piece of it for you. They come from the state, the two counties, one town, and two nonprofits. Nobody hands you the list, and the rules change every year. Here it is, with the catch on every one and the date each was last checked.
On this page
- Start hereThe one call that unlocks most of the list
- County and town moneyUp to $30,000 in Suffolk, up to $50,000 in Nassau and Brookhaven
- State mortgagesSONYMA, 3 percent down with 1 percent yours
- Nonprofit programsSmartMove, 1 percent down with a second mortgage
- How they stackWhat can sit on top of what
Start here: counseling first, house second
Almost every program on this page requires a class or a counseling session at a HUD certified agency before you apply. The county rounds will not wait while you get one. On Long Island that agency is usually the Long Island Housing Partnership in Hauppauge. The first step is their free orientation webinar. Do it before the first tour. It costs nothing, it takes an evening, and it is the certificate the money is waiting for.
The second thing to do before you fall for a house: get a pre approval from a lender who writes these programs. Not every lender does. The lenders on the resources page do, and the pre approval questions in the buyer guide tell you what to ask.
Suffolk County
Up to $30,000.
What it is
A zero interest deferred loan toward the down payment on a single family home inside the Suffolk consortium. Live there ten years and it is forgiven. Sell or move out early and it comes due.
Who qualifies
First time buyers, no home owned in the last three years, with household income inside the HUD limits for the year, at least $3,000 of your own money in the bank, and a home appraising at $551,000 or less in the last round.
The catch
It runs in rounds with a hard application deadline, and the 2024 round was closed at last check. You cannot sign a contract before the county issues your purchaser certificate. Counseling at a HUD certified agency is required, in person.
How to apply
Download the application and guidelines at the county's page when a round is open, and take the counseling first so you are ready the day it opens.
Status
2024 round closed at last check. The next round opens on the county's schedule; ask before you count on it. Checked 2026-09-07.
Nassau County
Up to $50,000, with at least $5,000 of your own.
What it is
A zero interest deferred loan toward the down payment and closing costs on a home in Nassau County, single family, condo, co-op or townhouse. Forgiven after fifteen years of living there at last check.
Who qualifies
First time buyers, no home owned in the last three years, with household income at or below 80 percent of the area median, buying at $594,000 or less in the last round.
The catch
Applications were closed at last check and the rounds are short. The residency term is long, and moving early means repaying HUD in full.
How to apply
Through the Long Island Housing Partnership when a round opens. Get on their orientation list now. (631) 435-4710.
Status
Closed at last check. Funding and the next opening date change; confirm with LIHP. Checked 2026-09-07.
Town of Brookhaven
Up to $50,000.
What it is
A HUD funded down payment and closing cost loan for a first time buyer purchasing inside the Town of Brookhaven, run through the Long Island Housing Partnership.
Who qualifies
Income eligible first time buyers who can meet the lender's own minimum down payment and get a mortgage on their own.
The catch
You must live in the home ten years or HUD requires full repayment. First come, first served until the money runs out, so the day it opens matters.
How to apply
Apply online through the Long Island Housing Partnership and ask for the Brookhaven Town HOME Down Payment Assistance Program. (631) 435-4710.
Status
Open while funds last; the pool empties fast. Confirm before you plan around it. Checked 2026-09-07.
State of New York
3 percent down, and only 1 percent of it has to be yours.
What it is
A 30 year fixed mortgage from the State of New York Mortgage Agency at a below market rate, financing up to 97 percent of the price. The rest of the down payment can come from a gift or one of the assistance programs below.
Who qualifies
Low income first time buyers, by SONYMA's income and price limits for Suffolk or Nassau. First time means no home owned in the last three years, waived for veterans.
The catch
The income cap is real and it is low. You must use a SONYMA participating lender, and a co-op or a three to four family home needs 3 percent from you, not 1.
How to apply
Ask a SONYMA participating lender for Achieving the Dream. The lenders on the resources page know the program.
Status
Standing program, open. Rates change monthly on SONYMA's page. Checked 2026-09-07.
Down payment help of $3,000 or 3 percent of the price, up to $15,000.
What it is
SONYMA's main first time buyer mortgage, a 30 year fixed with an optional down payment assistance loan attached, on one to four family homes, condos and co-ops.
Who qualifies
Low and moderate income first time buyers inside SONYMA's limits, which run higher than Achieving the Dream.
The catch
Taking the down payment assistance raises the rate a little. No prepayment penalty, but the term is 30 years only.
How to apply
Through a SONYMA participating lender. Say Low Interest Rate Program with DPAL.
Status
Standing program, open. Checked 2026-09-07.
Grants that reach you through a county or nonprofit program.
What it is
State money that funds local down payment and repair programs. You do not apply to the state; you apply to the local program it funds, and the county programs below sometimes layer it on top of their own funds.
Who qualifies
Whoever the local program says. The income limits belong to the local program.
The catch
It is invisible to a buyer. If a county or nonprofit program tells you part of the help is AHC money, that is this.
How to apply
Ask the county or the Long Island Housing Partnership whether AHC funds are layered this year.
Status
Funds move with the state budget each year. Checked 2026-09-07.
Nonprofit and lender partnerships
As little as 1 percent down from you, up to 19 percent of the price as a second mortgage.
What it is
A partnership between the Community Development Corporation of Long Island and the Housing Development Fund. The assistance is a 20 year fixed rate second mortgage that covers most of the down payment, which also lets you skip private mortgage insurance.
Who qualifies
First time buyers on Long Island who complete counseling with an approved agency such as CDCLI before applying.
The catch
It is a real second mortgage with a payment, not a grant. Only participating lenders write the first mortgage, and the list changes; confirm it with CDCLI before you fall for a house.
How to apply
Start with CDCLI's homebuyer counseling, then apply through a participating lender they name.
Status
Active at last check; the lender list is the moving part. Checked 2026-09-07.
Free counseling, and the application desk for the county and town programs.
What it is
A HUD certified nonprofit in Hauppauge. Most of the programs above either require its counseling or take their applications through it. The first step is their free orientation webinar for first time buyers.
Who qualifies
Anyone buying a first home on Long Island.
The catch
Counseling takes weeks, not days. Start before you start touring, because the county rounds do not wait for a certificate you have not earned yet.
How to apply
Call, or sign up for the orientation on their site. 180 Oser Avenue, Hauppauge, weekdays nine to five. (631) 435-4710.
Status
Open year round. Checked 2026-09-07.
How they stack
A SONYMA mortgage is the first loan. County, town and nonprofit money sits on top of it as a second lien or a deferred loan. SONYMA allows that. So picture a Suffolk buyer inside the income limits, in a year when the round is open. They put 1 percent of their own money down on an Achieving the Dream mortgage. The county's $30,000 covers the rest of the 3 percent plus closing costs. Whether your file can do that is a lender question, and the lender has to be one who writes SONYMA.
Two things that do not stack: a county deferred loan and the SmartMove second mortgage on the same purchase, because both want the second position; and any of these with a house you already signed a contract for, because every one of them requires the certificate before the contract.
The plain math. On a $550,000 house, 3 percent down is $16,500. With 1 percent from you that is $5,500 of your own money at the down payment, before closing costs and before the inspection package. The affordability tool runs the monthly side, and it carries the FHA lane for buyers who do not fit these programs.
This page lists programs and what they published, with the date each was checked. It is not lending advice and it is not an application. Income limits are set by HUD and SONYMA each year and change; the program's own page and your lender decide. Muds is not a lender and earns nothing from any program named here. Mohammed "Muds" Mudassir is a licensed real estate salesperson with OverSouth Real Estate, St James NY.
Call or text 631 528 5786 The full buyer guide What can I afford